Chainsaws are considered among the most dangerous of all handheld sawing tools. Statistics have shown that over 40,000 chainsaw-related injuries occur each year, many to the upper body parts of the operator due to kickback of the tool, kickback being defined as uncontrolled sudden upward motion of the chainsaw during operation. Many injuries have occurred while starting the chainsaw, which is done by use of a recoil starter rope that is rapidly pulled by the operator one or more times, where the chainsaw may suddenly jump when the on-board gasoline-powered engine starts, and can kick back to injure the operator in the arm, hand or on the body.
To help avoid such injuries, some modern chainsaws have a footplate integral with the rear handle, for the operator to secure the chainsaw on the ground by placing a foot on the footplate while holding the front handle when starting the tool. This practice allows for safer chainsaw operation by allowing the operator to securely hold the chainsaw against the ground with a foot to help restrain the chainsaw from moving during startup, using the operator's body weight, in addition to the use of larger and stronger muscles of the leg to aid the operator's arm in securely restraining and controlling unwanted motion of the chainsaw while starting it.
The provision of footplates or other placements for the operator's foot that are integral with the body of chainsaws requires the operator to bend the back forward in order to reach the recoil starter handle for starting the on-board gasoline-powered engine. In many situations, bending the back may be painful or impossible for the operator due to back or leg injury, surgery, sciatica and other back nerve issues, bulging disks, arthritis, muscular stiffness and other conditions causing the operator to suffer from limited mobility of the back. The operator may need to kneel instead, placing a knee on the footplate of the chainsaw handle to help stabilize it. In this position, the advantage of the footplate is compromised, since the force on the footplate is now substantially reduced. There are no practical alternatives in the form of devices or chainsaw accessories offered by the marketplace to alleviate the plight of many users of chainsaws with limited mobility of the back. In many cases, the user with limited back mobility finds it impossible to start the chainsaw without help from another.